Customer Reviews

Irredeemable Vol 2

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This second trade paperback collects issues #5-8 of the acclaimed Boom! Studios superhero-gone-rogue comic book series "Irredeemable" from writer Mark Waid and artist Peter Krause. The narrative alternates between The Plutonian's superhero past with his allies The Paradigm and his terrifyingly nihilistic supervillian present-day persona. Krause's artwork remains strong, and the development of the cast of new superheroes and partial revelations of The Plutonian's motivations made the story more enjoyable than that of Volume 1.
However, I offer one significant criticism of Volume 2. Commendably, BOOM! priced Volume 1 at a mere ten bucks. Volume 2's thickness makes its $16.99 cover price seem reasonable... at first. I finished reading Issue 8 and then was surprised to see the variant covers for the four issues so early in the book. Then I was dismayed to find that the page count is padded by a fourteen page preview of another Mark Waid series! BOOM!'s list price of $16.99 for a measly four issues borders on the outrageous (more expensive than even the $3.99 individual comic books!), and without Amazon's discount I would have felt ripped off.

I am hooked on this series that centres around the mightiest superhero who suddenly turns to the dark side and becomes the most evil super villain. We start out by meeting the last living member of The Plutonium's former superhero group, The Volt and a flashback to his joining of the group. This book heavily focuses on the group members as they regroup, try to locate The Plutonium and figure a way to bring him down. The dynamics between them and the individual personalities all take shape. There is also tension in a personal situation. The group does track down Plutonium's lair but one member goes off on his own to confront Plutonium and through flashbacks we find out the truth of events that lead up to his turning evil. The volume ends with a bit of a shock that leaves us hanging on for the next volume. I am really enjoying these characters. While not everyone yet has been a major focus, the ones who have been are showing to be many layered with multiple aspects to their characters with backstories and personal lives beyond just being super heroes. I am anxiously awaiting Vol. 3 which will be out later this year.

An added bonus in this volume at the end of the book, after the usual Art Gallery of cover art, is a 14-page preview of Mark Waid's Potter's Field which I must say has me very interested

First of all, Mark Waid nad Peter Krause are a great team for generating quality comics and story telling.

The Irredeemable story is a great example of the culmination of their respective talents.

The story of "The Plutonian's" spiral into becoming the world's most dangerous super-villain/mass murderer is highly entertaining.

Second, I really don't appreciate that the publisher/talent have taken the opportunity to charge a premium for a trade paperback which is fully 1/3 ads and a sample story of another series with awful artwork.

I felt cheated and annoyed after finishing one part of the story only to be greeted with "Sample Covers" and "Other BOOM! Series" pages. Then there was a lame excerpt from a series about "John Doe", which was a neat idea put the art work is bad and the main character, John Doe, man of mystery, was just plain dull.

I recommend waiting for the larger collected TPB when it comes out, don't buy Irredeemable Volume 2, unless it's on sale. I paid [...] bucks for [...] worth of story.

Alright, imagine you're Superm...Err... The Plutonian. You have the weight of the whole world on your shoulders. You are nearly all powerful but the world is a big place and you can't be everywhere at once. Now you need that special someone who loves you for who you are. Just to stay sane you need that one person who sees past the bulletproof skin, Herculean strength, and the ability to outrace radio waves. But, what if that one person you would save the world for... thought you were a freak? The greatest hero turned greatest villian. I loved vol 1. And then vol 2 somehow managed to make the Plutonian sympathetic... this is the best comic series on the market today.

As much as I love Waid, I can't believe how long I waited to pick up this body of work... But after reading the first volume, and the sister series Incorruptible, I am sooooo glad I finally did. I guess the bright side to that is that I now have several volumes of each series to delight over. And this series is nothing short of spectacular. All that hype? TOTALLY worth it. The story sounds so simple, and yet it turns an entire concept and medium on it's head. The world's greatest and most powerful hero, The Plutonian (think Superman in most ways that count), just goes absolutely and completely crackers and starts slaughtering people by the millions. Meanwhile, his super friends, The Paradigm, are desperate to learn as much about him as they can in an effort to try to stop him. Yeah, the story has been done before, in fact, in a way, there have been Superman stories dealing with another person controlling Superman for evil deeds. But it's NEVER been done like this. And yeah, in this issue, we get answers. We see the depths of the horror, and we get a HUGE shocker/fight scene at the end... But you know what REALLY makes this genius? It's the fact that Waid is so deft, knows this character so well, that as he unfolds the events that lead to the Plutonian's snap, it's done in such a way and to such a degree that you almost feel sorry for the guy. Not quite, but darn close. LOL And really, is there any better compliment I can pay to the man? Check this series out, and you won't be disappointed.

Thanks so much for your time folks.
Sincerely, R.A. McDowell

Interesting but unusual take on super hero stuff.Imagine if Superman went out of his gourd.That is what this is.Pretty dark,yet kind of funny,to twisted folks like me...

My copy of this book had an amazon sticker on the back as well as a security sticker (which are impossible to get off) on the inside of the front cover. Would of cost me half the price of the book to ship it back so be warned that you may get this same thing.

Book two starts off big with The Plutonian broadcasting a message to everyone on the planet to assure them that no one, even in their most private of moments, are safe from his wraith. Waid manages to create a fearsome character more terrifying than any super villain ever created by DC or Marvel. It's clear that the Plutonian's goal isn't riches or power it's simply to punish humanity by inflicting maximum terror and mistrust on them. After The Plutonian has his fun we are introduced to Volt, a black superhero with electricity based powers (see Black Lightning, Black Vulcan, Static Shock etc..). Volt points out the irony of his super powers although this implies he's aware of these other characters. Is this a weird breaking of the fourth wall moment? Volt has an unfortunate paranoia about racism and the ignorant white characters in the book seem more than ready to feed it. The treatment of racism is probably the most ham handed part of the series so far.

The big question leading into volume 2 was why would the squeaky clean hero of Earth turn into a vindictive, bloodthirsty monster? It seemed almost inevitable that the answer would be somewhat disappointing but Waid is giving perhaps the best answer possible. It isn't one thing; it is a culmination of events throughout The Plutonian's life leading up to a moment when he could no longer turn back. It reminds me so much of Superboy Prime's villain turn in Infinite Crisis when he inadvertently decapitated one of the heroes. This was the moment of truth for Prime and he ultimately chose the path of darkness. He continued to kill until there was absolutely no turning back. We have all experienced moments of utter frustration where we could only fume in anger but The Plutonian's powers give him the ability to fully vent and in that moment when his mind was clouded with anger he took a step too far and kept on walking hence the title Irredeemable. At that moment he projected all the shame and humiliation of the mistakes he's made onto mankind and the more pain he inflicted the more the hatred built.

My biggest issue with the series is the art by Peter Kraus. His penciling lacks any charm and the inking is as subtle as an elephant in a tea shop with character costumes, including The Plutonian's, that are as dull as dirt. It always disappoints me when the visuals are so inferior to the story and I think of other series' like From Hell and V for Vendetta where I wished a different artist could have been chosen.

*** SPOILER ALERT ***
What bothered my most about this volume was the addition of a character whose power equals or perhaps exceeds The Plutonian's own. This is not a new character but inexplicably was hiding his (or her) level of power. I liked the fact that The Plutonian was SO much more powerful than anyone else magnifying the fear and leaving the heroes always in a defensive position. The big reveal is fairly powerful stuff but I don't like the new dynamic. It makes The Plutonian look weak.
*** END SPOILER ALERT ***

Despite a few issues I have this is some seriously intense writing and I can tell you having already read the next volume it just keeps getting more intense. Waid's reality contrasts amazingly with the classic Superman origin. If a couple adopted a child only to discover his strength and abilities are far removed from anything anywhere on the planet would they care for him lovingly like Ma and Pa Kent or fear for their lives from the child who could kill them with a single temper tantrum and how would the child react to the terror he inadvertently inflict on those from whom he simply desires love? Waid also adds some cleverness that I loved such as the realization that when The Plutonian hears a sound with his super hearing that no matter how fast he can move to react he still needs to take into account the time it takes for the sound to reach his super ears. I find myself riveted by this series. It's still coming up just shy of five stars but I wholeheartedly recommend it.

Irredeemable is the sort of series that would seem to have a short shelf life. Reading about the world's greatest superhero running amok and torturing the planet's inhabitants should, in theory at least, get old: How long can you read about the same villain going berserk before you want to see him taken down, served justice, made to pay for his crimes?

Surprisingly, in the hands of an able storyteller like Mark Waid, the story remains fresh and vibrant, as Volume 2 of Irredeemable proves. Collecting issues 5 through 8 of the monthly series, this second volume further illustrates the Plutonian's troubled background, both as a child and as a superhero. The Plutonian is more or less a Superman figure, with somewhat similar powers, and he's been a member of a Justice League-like group known as the Paradigm. Together, this collection of superheroes saved the world many times over, but something, some case, has made the Plutonian crack. He's killed millions of people around the globe, including many of his former teammates, and he's biding his time searching for the rest. The survivors have banded together in a secret hiding place--a difficult thing, considering the vision and hearing powers and other heightened senses their pursuer possesses--as they try to formulate a plan to bring him down.

One of the treats of Irredeemable is Peter Krause's crisp, clean art, which oftentimes evokes the style of legendary comics artist Curt Swan. It adds to the overall creepiness of the ongoing story, making it truly seem as though you've stepped into an EC Comics spinoff of a Golden Age storyline.

Volume 2 is less violent and graphic than its predecessor, but that doesn't mean it's light fare. It remains a dark and twisted book with plenty of gore, so it's more suited for adults and older teens. The action is swift and intense, and Waid doesn't dawdle in the plot lines. Most interesting is the subplot involving the Plutonian's former girlfriend (the fabulously named Bette Noir), who is now married to a superhero who has no idea his wife used to be the Plutonian's flame. The storyline gives Waid opportunity to inject a little bit of humor periodically (such as the scene in which the heroes have infiltrated the Plutonian's lair: Bette opens the door on a shrine to herself in various stages of dress, and she quickly shuts the door and says, "Dead end. Keep moving!").

Perhaps a less talented writer would have devolved the series into a quick slugfest, but Waid keeps the interest piqued with Irredeemable. Where he'll keep taking the series is anyone's guess, but it's far and away one of the most interesting and compelling superhero books currently being published.
-- John Hogan

Awesome...Great story on all fronts...love, violence, suspense, flashbacks...I mean you don't get better than this.

Make sure to pick up Incorruptable as it takes place at the same time and it kicks azz as well.